Javi Martinez on the verge of transfer to Athletic Bilbao

Per a new report from Spanish outlet MARCA, Athletic Bilbao and Bayern Munich are in the final stages of agreeing a transfer deal that would see Javi Martinez return to La Liga. It’s understood that the deal will be for two years with an option for Athletic to extend Javi for a third year based on performances. Athletic is eager to get the deal over the line as soon as possible, and they would like to have Martinez ready and available before their league clash against Sevilla at the beginning of November.

Bayern initially wanted at least €12 million for Martinez, but Athletic were not prepared to pay that much for the midfielder, noting that he had only one year left on his current contract. Martinez, however, has pushed for the move and even made it clear that he would be willing to sacrifice some of his wages at Bayern to help facilitate the move to the Basque region. Even Karl-Heinz Rummenigge had said earlier this month that “we [Bayern] have made it clear that we will not object to his departure. We will try to find a fair solution.”

Now that everything regarding this transfer is in the final stages, Bayern could be buoyed by the fact that they just sold Thiago Alcantara to Liverpool for €30 million and would get roughly €10 million for Martinez. These are funds they could reinvest in the transfer market, potentially to complete the signing of Ajax’s Sergiño Dest, among others. MARCA also suggests Athletic is pushing to have the deal done before September 27, when they play Eibar in the league next weekend. It would appear that a deal is an inevitability at this point.